Annual redfish tournament on hold

An annual charity-based fishing tournament that awards prizes to anglers for catching legal-sized redfish with the most spots will not take place in 2014.

Robbie Smith, executive director of Safe Harbor Academy, said the postponement was necessary and the tournament could return at a later date.

In January, the Times-Union awarded sponsorship of its Redfish Roundup to the academy, which renamed the event. It was announced the 14th annual competition, which began in 2001, would take place April 5 at the Jim King Park and Boat Ramp on Sisters Creek.

“Right now with such a short lead time, we felt that we needed to take a step back to look at all the factors in order to put on a tournament that is fun, safe and of excellent quality,” Smith said.

“The overarching theme is excellence and quality. We want to continue in the vein of excellence that the Times-Union has set as a precedent.”

Smith said it is possible the tournament will return this fall — or it may be 2015.